GENERAL ANATOMY

CONNECTIVE TISSUE

Dr. Juned P. Labbai

MBBS, MD, DNB (Anatomy)
Associate Professor
Department of Anatomy
D Y Patil University - School of Medicine
Objectives
 Basic tissues?
 What is connective tissue
 Compositions and functions of connective tissue
 Classification
 Fascia
Some basics
What is a tissue ?
Collection of cells together with intercellular substance,
performing a similar function.

Basic tissues ?
 Epithelial
 Connective
 Muscular
 Nervous
4 Basic Tissues Stratified
squamous
 Epithelial Tissue keratinized
epithelium

 Connective Tissue

loose connective
 Muscle Tissue tissue
Skeletal muscle

 Nervous tissue
Spinal cord
Classification of Epithelial tissue
What is a Connective Tissue?
Connective tissue is a widely distributed general type of tissue
which supports, binds and protects the special (well
differentiated) tissues of the body.
 COMPONENTS

Cellular Extracellular Matrix

Fibrous Non-fibrous
(Ground Substance)
Cells
 Fibroblasts Fibrocyte

 Adipocytes (lipocytes, fat cells)

 Macrophages

 Lymphocytes
Cells…..cont.
 Mast cells

 Plasma cell

 Granulocytes

 Pigment cell
Extracellular Matrix
 FIBROUS ELEMENT
◦ Collagen
◦ Reticular
◦ Elastic

 GROUND SUBSTANCE
Collagen Fibers
 Fibroblasts synthesize all of the collagen, elastic, and reticular
fibers.

◦ Tough
◦ Thick
◦ do not branch
◦ most abundant
 found in almost all connective tissue of all organs
Collagen Fibers Reticular Fibers
Elastic Fibers
◦ Thin
◦ Small
◦ Branching fibers
◦ Allow stretch
◦ Have less tensile strength than collagen fibers
◦ Composed of microfibrils and the protein elastin
Elastic Fibers……cont.
 In abundance in the lungs, bladder, and skin

 Allows for stretching and recoiling of the aorta and pulmonary

trunk during powerful blood ejections from the heart
ventricles

 In the walls of the large vessels, the smooth muscle cells

synthesize the elastic fibers
Elastic Fibers
Ground Substance
 Composes:
◦ Adhesive glycoproteins
◦ Soluble complexes composed of carbohydrate polymers linked to
protein molecules
◦ E.g. proteoglycans and glycosaminoglycans

 Bind water
 Distributes the mechanical stresses
 Serve as structural environment of the cells embedded in it
Classification
Connective Tissue

Embryonic Adult

Mucoid Mesenchyme

e.g. Wharton’s jelly

 Adult

General Special

e.g.
Blood
Cartilage
Loose Dense Bone

e.g. Adipose tissue

Regular Irregular

e.g. Tendon, e.g. Dermis,

ligament submucosa of digestive tract
Loose connective tissue
 Meshwork of thin collagen and elastic fibres interlacing in all
directions
 Both elasticity and tensile strength

◦ E.g. Adipose tissue, Superficial fascia, submucosa in the digestive tract

◦ Subcutaneous tissue in regions where this is devoid of fat (e.g. eyelids,
penis, scrotum and labia, subcutaneous tissue)
 Fibroblast

Collagen fiber

Elastic fiber

Loose connective tissue

Adipose tissue
 Consists of large aggregates of adipocytes
 Fat deposits serve as energy stores
 Sources of metabolic lipids
 Thermal insulation (subcutaneous fat)
 Mechanical shock-absorbers
◦ Distributed in subcutaneous tissue
◦ in the mesenteries and omenta
◦ in the female breast
◦ in bone marrow
◦ as retro-orbital fat behind the eyeball
◦ around the kidneys
◦ deep to the plantar skin of the foo
◦ as localized pads in the synovial membrane of many joints
Connective tissue septa

Adipose cell

Capillary

Adipose tissue
Dense irregular connective tissue
 The matrix is relatively acellular
 Contains a high proportion of collagen fibres organized into

thick bundles
 Imparting considerable strength

 E.g.
◦ The reticular layer of the dermis
◦ The superficial connective tissue sheaths of muscle and nerves, and
the adventitia of large blood vessels
◦ The capsules of various glands and organs (e.g. testis, sclera of the
eye, periosteum and perichondrium)
 Collagen fibers

Nuclei of fibroblasts

Capillaries (t.s.)

Dense irregular connective tissue

Regular connective tissues
 Fibres are regularly orientated
 Thicker bundles such as ligaments or tendons
 Nuclei of fibroblasts

Bundle of collagen fibers

Dense regular connective tissue

Clinical anatomy of connective tissue
 Ehlers-Danlos syndrome is a group of inherited
disorders marked by extremely loose joints,
hyperelastic skin that bruises easily, and easily
damaged blood vessels
Fascia
SUPERFICIAL FASCIA
 Synonyms:
 Hypodermis
 Tela subcutanea
 subcutaneous tissue
 Definition

Superficial fascia is a general coating of the body beneath the

skin, made up of loose areolar tissue with varying amounts of
fat
 Sup Superficial fascia
Lat Med

Inf
Features
 Most distinct:
◦ Lower part of the anterior abdominal wall
◦ Perineum
◦ Limbs
 Very thin:
◦ Dorsal aspect of the hands and feet
◦ Sides of the neck, face, and around the anus
 Very dense:
◦ Scalp
◦ Palms
◦ Soles
Contents
 Subcutaneous muscles in the face, neck and scrotum
 Mammary gland
 Deeply situated sweat glands
 Localized groups of lymph nodes
 Cutaneous nerves and vessels
Distribution of Fat in Superficial Fascia
 Abundant:
◦ Gluteal region (buttocks)
◦ Lumbar region (flanks)
◦ Front of the thighs
◦ Anterior abdominal wall below the umbilicus
◦ Mammary gland
◦ Postdeltoid region
◦ Cervicothoracic region
 Absent from the eyelids, external ear, penis, and scrotum
 In females: fat is more abundant and is more evenly distributed

 Panniculus adiposus: subcutaneous layer of fat

Functions
 Facilitates movements of the skin
 Serves as a soft medium for the passage of the vessels and

nerves to the skin

 Conserves body heat because fat is a bad conductor of heat
DEEP FASCIA
 Definition
Deep fascia is a fibrous sheet which invests the body beneath
the superficial fascia. It is devoid of fat, and is usually
inelastic and tough
Distribution
 Best defined in the limbs where it forms tough and tight
sleeves, and in the neck where it forms a collar

 Ill defined: on the trunk and face

Modifications of deep fascia
 Forms the intermuscular septa
separating functionally different group
of muscles into separate
compartments
 Covers each muscle as epimysium which
sends in the septa perimysium, endomysium

 Through all these connective tissue septa

arterioles, capillaries, venules, lymphatics and
nerves traverse to reach each muscle fibre

 Covers each nerve as epineurium, each nerve

fascicle as perineurium and individual nerve
fibre as endoneurium
 Forms sheaths around large arteries, e.g.,
carotid sheath, axillary sheath
 The deep fascia is dense around the artery

and rather loose around the vein to give an

allowance for the vein to distend

Modified to form the capsule,

synovial membrane and bursae in
relation to the joints
 Forms tendon
sheaths wherever
tendons cross over a
joint

 In the region of
palm and sole it is
modified to form
aponeuroses e.g.
palmar and plantar
aponeuroses
Summary
 Basic tissues?
 What is connective tissue
 Compositions and functions of connective tissue
 Classification
 Fascia
THANK YOU